FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention concerns a hinge capable of allowing adjustment of the position of covering elements with respect to their corresponding sanitary fixtures, such as toilets or bidets. In particular, the invention is suitable for the attachment of seat and cover assemblies to toilets in general.
DESCRIPTION OF PRIOR ART
It is known that toilets are manufactured by casting a ceramic slip material inside suitable multi-part molds, the molds being made of a material permeable to liquids. It is also known that a cerain number of castings can be made with a single mold and that, between one casting and another, the shaping cavity of the mold is subject to a small but continuous dimensional change. More specifically, the cavity enlarges, by as much as several millimeters over the service life of a mold, with the result that toilets are dimensionally different, especially if the first ones cast in a particular mold are compared with the last ones cast.
On the other hand, the seat and/or cover assemblies, designed to be fastened subsequently to the toilets, have unvarying dimensions since they are made of synthetic materials which are molded in dimensionally stable molds.
In some cases, when the seat and cover assemblies are installed on their respective toilets, they quite often do not match the outer peripheral profile of the upper rim of the toilet as well as desired. In particular, the front edge of the seat is farther back than the corresponding rim of the toilet, creating a discontinuity or step. This is not only annoying to users but disadvantageous from an aesthetic standpoint.
Moreover, the usual hinge devices used to fasten the seat and cover assemblies do not provide means to adjust the seat and/or cover assemblies to overcome these disadvantages.